Former Bolton Wanderers striker Kevin Davies believes that Newcastle manager Rafa Benitez has made a wise decision in signing Daryl Murphy from Ipswich Town.
The Irish international made the switch to St James’ Park a few days before the end of the transfer window, and talking to the Evening Chronicle, Davies thinks that Benitez’s desire to rotate players means having both Aleksandar Mitrovic and Murphy as two target men in the squad will help the Spaniard manage the squad during the long 46 match Championship season:
“Rafa’s a very experienced manager and he likes to rotate. I’ve had some managers who like to keep the same team, as well as others who like to chop and change depending on who you’re playing. They might fancy someone with a bit of pace rather than a targetman for a certain game but, at the end of the day, you need to have different options as a manager.”
Davies believes that the physicality of the English second tier is one of the main reasons Benitez wanted Murphy in the squad for this campaign:
“In the Championship, more often that not, you’re going to come up against some powerful defenders – you need experienced strikers with a bit of muscle to deal with them sometimes.”
Murphy scored his first goal at international level last night in a 2-2 draw against Serbia, nine years after making his debut for the Republic of Ireland in 2007. The Magpies will be hoping the Irishman can also contribute some important goals at club level this season.
